BP welcomes military help for Gulf oil leak

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is even worse than believed and as the government grows concerned that the rig's operator is ill-equipped to contain it, officials are offering a military response to try to avert a massive environmental disaster along the ecologically fragile U.S. coastline.

Speaking today on NBC's "Today" show, an executive for BP PLC, which operated the oil rig that exploded and sank last week, said the company would welcome help from the U.S. military.

"We'll take help from anyone," BP Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles said.

But time may be running out. Not only was a third leak discovered - which government officials said is spewing five times as much oil into the water than originally estimated - but it might be closer to shore than previously known, and could have oil washing up on shore by Friday.

At the same time, there appeared to be a rift developing between BP and the Coast Guard, which is overseeing the increasingly desperate operation to contain the spill and clean it up.